Company Drags Feet in Largest Colorado Oil Spill Ever Under Southern Ute Land

 An underground gasoline pipeline going through the Southern Ute Reservation near Ignacio, Colorado, has been spewing pollution into the drinking water aquifer which supplies residents in a 110-acre area. How long has this been going on? We don't know, but in late 2024, cows revealed the spill by pawing the ground with their hooves, sending plumes of gas into the air. (Photo below by Lee Recca of wetlands in Southwestern Colorado.)

 Texas-based Enterprise, the owner of the pipeline, wasn't monitoring it for spills, even though the line is 40 years old and uses outdated technology. Moreover, they didn't start remediation efforts until six months after the spill was uncovered by the cows.  Replacement of the affected pipeline is not planned to start until a year from now. In the meantime, residents have no access to clean water and must rely on water being shipped in to them. The underground plume has spread and become the largest spill ever in Colorado, estimated at 97,000 to 200,000 gallons. 

Enterprise operates a large network of underground pipelines sending  oil products through Midwestern and Rocky Mountain states to Texas. More information from the Telluride News can be accessed here: 

https://www.telluridenews.com/news/article_a401808e-d76b-453a-9470-28c44d15bc85.html

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